The Coalition Government has damaged the reputation of the Dáil by sending it on holidays next week. At a time when the democratic process is under pressure because of a series of politically-related scandals, the decision to reduce the parliamentary working hours of Ministers is to be deplored.
And, make no mistake about it, this decision was made by the Government for the convenience of both Ministers and Ministers of State. Their needs and their holiday requirements set the agenda. The development was particularly ill-judged in the context of benchmarking awards, which Oireachtas members are due to receive in return for increases in productivity.
Nobody doubts that Government Ministers - and backbench TDs - work hard and exhausting hours. But should they, as the Government Chief Whip, Ms Mary Hanafin, appeared to suggest in the Dáil, adopt the standardised school calendar for their parliamentary work? The Government itself does not close down for months at a time. Even in holiday periods, a number of Ministers are available to deal with emergency situations. So why should the Houses of the Oireachtas, elected to legislate and to hold the Government to account, sit for eight months of the year? The answer is simple: Ministers regard the Dáil as a necessary nuisance that should be side-stepped whenever possible. It is regarded with thinly-disguised disdain.
Reform has been on the agenda for decades. Important changes were made by providing independent Oireachtas funding and through the establishment of committee systems. But the relationship between Government and the Dáil remains dysfunctional. Major announcements are made outside the Chamber. Ministers are reluctant to attend late night adjournment debates. Opportunities to question them have actually reduced. Last year, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, secured a change in standing orders which exempted him from answering questions in the Dáil on Thursdays. And new procedures have made it more difficult to extract information from Ministers.
The McCracken tribunal pointed out that much of its work would have been unnecessary if Dáil questions had been answered properly at the time. Instead of introducing greater transparency, the Coalition Government filleted the Freedom of Information Act which the opposition had used to extract supplementary information to parliamentary questions.
Ending the dual mandate, involving local and national government, offers an opportunity for reform. TDs and senators will no longer attend council meetings on Mondays. The Dáil could sit in plenary session for four, or even five, days a week. But the need for constituency work will remain. And, until the new system becomes firmly established, rural TDs are likely to resist the introduction of a five-day sitting week. The most important requirement, however, is for the Government to treat the Oireachtas with respect.